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1914 History of Boone County
Chapter XX
Worth Township

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Worth Township is bounded on the west by the Des Moines River and for this reason it is not a full congressional township. The southwest part of it is cut off by the incline of the river, which part belongs to Marcy Township. The south one-third of Worth Township was at the time of the organization of the county a part of Pleasant Township, and at the same time the north two-thirds was a part of Boone Township. It was surveyed in 1847 by James Davis, deputy surveyor, and certified to by Henry A. Wiltse, surveyor general at Dubuque, Iowa. There were four tracts of land purchased from the Government as early as October, 1848. Lewis Kinney and John Boyles purchased land in Section 2 and Jefiferson Hoffman and Matthias HofTman in Section 15.

Worth Township was organized and named in March, 1858. It was named in honor of William J. Worth, a general of the Mexican war and the hero of Monterey. It was organized by Samuel B. McCall, county judge at that time, and named by him.

The first settlers of Worth Township were John Pea and his family and James Hull and his family. They settled in Section 2, Township 83, Range 26, May 26, 1846. The point of timber where this settlement was made continued to be known as Pea's Point for many years. The little stream that heads at this point of timber is known as Pea's Branch unto this dav. When the raid on the Lott family was made by the Sioux chief, Si-dom-i-na-do-tah, at the mouth of Boone River, in December, 1846, the settlement at Pea's Point was the nearest one to the scene of that historic event. When Henrv Lott and his stepson arrived at Pea's Point, soliciting help to go to the rescue of his family, John Pea and Thomas Sparks were two of the men who went to aid in the rescue. They also assisted in the burial of the dead bodies of Mrs. Lott and her son, Milton Lott. Mr. Sparks became a settler of what is now Worth Township some time during the summer of 1846.

There is rather an amusing incident which occurred during the winter of 1846 and 1847 at Pea's Point. John Pea had been away from home helping to erect a log house for some settlers who were late in arriving in the country and did not reach home in time to provide wood for the fire next morning. On looking out next morning he was much surprised to find snow on the ground a foot deep. This snow had covered up every dry stick of timber near his log cabin and lo start a fire with green wood from the forest could not be done in a reasonable time. Around his few cultivated acres there was a rail fence and most of these rails were large and well seasoned. They looked so tempting that he exclaimed: "Fifty good rails will make fifty good fires and it is a poor specimen of a man who cannot make fifty rails in a day when the spring opens." So suiting his action to the expression, it was but a short time until he had a good fire.

In 1848 John Hull, Henry Holcomb, William Dickerson, William Hull, George Hull, Nathan Hull, Henry Hoffman, Jefiferson Hofifman and Matthias Hoffman came and located in the township, nearly all of them purchasing land.

In 1849 John Long, Clark Luther, James E. Moss, John Boyles, Pembroke Gault, John Gault and many others came and located in the township.

From 1849 to 1852 came David Parker, W. D. Parker, John B. Montgomery, Squire Boone, W. M. Boone, George Drake, James Gildea, John Sturdivant, James A. Cunningham and William Dyer, all of whom became land owners in Worth Township.

At the end of the year 1853 about all the land in Worth Township was purciiased from the Government and improvements made thereon. One of the serious things that confronted the early settlers of this and other townships in the pioneer times was the long distance they had to haul their grain in order to get it manufactured into breadstufifs. At first the settlers of Worth Township went to Oskaloosa, a distance of one hundred miles. This was a great hardship, especially in winter time. Sometimes as many as eight teams went together, and it would frequentlv be three weeks before all of them could return home. Families often ran out of breadstuff and subsisted for days upon hominy and potatoes as a substitute for bread. These were trials and hardships that make people of the present day shudder. But the pioneers lived through them without the loss of a single person from starvation. Elk, deer, wild turkeys and prairie chickens were plentiful in those days and the good hunters kept the settlers well supplied with wild meat and wild fowls. This was a rough way of living but it kept starvation away from the cabins of the settlers until better facilities came nearer them.

It has already been stated that Boone was a part of Polk County for election, revenue and judicial purposes prior to the time of its organization. In pursuance of this authority the Board of County Commissioners of Polk County, in July, 1847, organized a voting precinct in Boone County. The action of the board is as follows: "Ordered, That the County of Boone and the country north and west of said County of Boone, which is by law attached to the County of Polk for revenue, election and judicial purposes, be and the same is hereby set off into, and shall constitute a separate precinct by the name of Boone, and the place of holding elections in said precinct shall be at the house of John Pea in said precinct."

The election of 1848 was a closely contested one. After making a careful canvass of the votes in Polk County, the democrats found that they were a few votes in the minority. Hoyt Sherman was the whig candidate for the office of clerk of court, and Henry Early was the democratic candidate. A council of the leading democrats was held in the office of Barlow Granger to decide what would be the best course to pursue in order to elect Mr. Early their candidate. After thinking the matter over for a while Mr. Granger gave it as his opinion that the opposing candidate, Mr. Sherman, nor any of his friends, had thought of the new voting precinct in Boone County. "The thing for use to do is to keep quiet about it, get our tickets printed and send a man up to the Boone precinct and get the voters out, and in this way I think we can elect our candidate." The plan was carried out just as Mr. Granger had outlined it. The election was held and the returns of Polk County elected Mr. Sherman by a very small majority. The whigs were rejoicing over their victory, when Mr. Spofford, the man sent to the Boone precinct, arrived with the returns, and the result changed the joy of the whigs to grief and sorrow. Barlow Granger's plan elected Mr. Early and at the same time perpetrated a good joke on the whigs.

The first schoolhouse built in Worth Township was located in section 11, on what is now the farm of W. H. Wane. It was built in 1851 by donations and work of the citizens and not by taxation. It was a frame house built of native timber. In 1856 this house and the land on which it stood were sold to G. W. Brown, who used it for a dwelling. He raised it one story higher and used it for a residence the remainder of his life. This building has been moved back to the rear of the yard and it still stands there. This is the only one of the early pioneer schoolhouses yet remaining. Of the pioneer schoolteachers who taught in this schoolhouse may be mentioned Thomas Sparks, L. J. Dunn, James Purcell, D. M. Dunn and Irene Holcomb.

The second schoolhouse in Worth Township was built on section 34. It was a log house, built in 1852 by the citizens for temporary use. It was called the Elm Grove schoolhouse. It was used for school purposes until 1858, when the Pleasant Grove schoolhouse was buili, ami it ceased to be used longer for school purposes. Among the teachers employed here may be mentioned V. B. Crooks, John S. Green, Irene Holcomb and Thomas R. Gildea. In 1858 the Boone schoolhouse was built on section 23. This was the same year in which the Pleasant Grove schoolhouse was erected, and which was located on section 35. About the same time the Des Moines schoolhouse was built on section 2. These have all been moved as the result of redistricting and are now among the things that were. Worth Township now has seven schoolhouses, one of which is within the corporate limits of the Town of Luther. The schools are in a prosperous condition.

The streams of Worth Township are Big Creek, Pea's Branch, Honey Creek and Pole Cat Creek. A sketch of these streams is given in an article elsewhere under the heading of Small Streams of Boone County. A singular formation of cliffs of rock on both sides of Pea's Branch, about half a mile above its mouth, known as the Ledges, has always attracted the attention of the people. The Ledges consist of perpendicular walls of rock, twenty feet high, on both sides of the branch and extend a distance of about ten rods. The Ledges were a place of considerable resort for a period of about five years. Some parties from Des Moines and Boone erected a building there, which was called Beaulah Home. Many children from Des Moines were brought there for a two or three weeks' open air outing. But the Ledges were so difficult of access that the outings were discontinued, the buildings were sold and moved away and Beaulah Home is now among the things that were. But the Ledges are still there - majestic and immovable.

There are two railroads that pass through portions of Worth Township. The Chicago & Northwestern passes through the northwest corner and the Boone line of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul passes through the entire length of the township. This line has two stations - one at Luther, the other at Grayson.

From first to last there have been five post offices in Worth Township. The first one was established in 1863 at the house of W. M. Boone in section 23, the gentleman above mentioned being the first postmaster. Two years later Mr. Boone resigned and J. B. Hurlburt was appointed postmaster and the office was moved to his residence a mile and a half south on the mail route. When Mr. Hurlburt was elected county treasurer in 1866, he resigned and J. A. Cunningham was appointed postmaster. The office was then moved to his residence, a mile farther south on the mail route. Mr. Cunningham kept the office a little over a year, when he resigned, and Thomas Doran was appointed postmaster. The latter moved the office to his residence a mile north on the same route. About two years later Mr. Doran resigned and the postoffice was discontinued. Each of the postoffices above mentioned was named Worth, after the name of the township.

The fifth and last postoffice established in the township was located at Luther and it was named Luther in honor of Clarke Luther, who owned the house it was kept in and the land on which it stood. It was established in 1884, with J. K. Jenkins as the first postmaster. This postoffice is still distributing mail to the citizens of the south part of Worth Township.

PARKERSBURG

There have been two towns laid off in Worth Township. The first of these was Parkersburg, which was laid out by David Parker in the month of November, 1852, on the northwest quarter of section 2, at the point of timber known as Pea's Point. This town was designed to be a rival of Boonesboro. All of the settlers at that time believed that the first railroad to come into Boone County would come from the south and that it would run on the prairie touching the points of timber on its route. In running thus, it would miss Boonesboro about two miles and Parkersburg would be a station, which in a short time would become the county seat. This north and south railroad so fondly hoped for did not come until long after the Chicago & Northwestern had spanned the state from east to west. But when the line from the south running into Boone was built in 1882, it ran within eighty rods of the eastern limits of Parkersburg, but by that time it was among the things that were. Parkersburg never so much as got a start toward being a town. The old Boone County House, kept by David Parker, became one of the most prominent country hostelries ever kept in Central Iowa. This country hotel was the only thing beyond the ordinary that Parkersburg ever had.

LUTHER

The second and last town laid out in Worth Township is the Town of Luther. It has already been stated that the postoffice at Luther was established in 1884. But the town was not laid out until January 26, 1893. In the fall of 1883 Clark Luther built a storehouse on the site of Luther and J. K. Jenkins opened a store which in a short time met with considerable patronage. J. K. Jenkins was the first postmaster at Luther.

From the above it will be seen that the postoffice at Luther was established about nine years before the town was laid out. For a town of its size there is a large amount of business transacted there. Much grain and stock are shipped from Luther. There are now about three stores in the town, one bank, a blacksmith and woodwork shop, a livery barn, a telephone office, a practicing physician, two grain elevators and a number of nice residences. Although Luther has not more than one hundred and fifty people within its limits it has been incorporated for a number of years and has a system of waterworks and electric lights. It has, during its short career, lost two stores and a lumber yard by fire. None of these places of business have been rebuilt. The outlook for Luther to continue to grow and maintain a good volume of business is assured. It is on the Boone line of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, at a safe distance from any other town and in the midst of a fine agricultural country. Luther has two churches and two good church buildings. One of these is of the Methodist Episcopal denomination, the other the Church oi Christ. It also has a schoolhouse large enough to accommodate the pupils of the district. George Abraham is the present mayor of the town.

About two miles west of Luther is the Meadow Grove Church. This is the oldest church society in the township, having been organized in 1881. This society has a good, energetic membership and a splendid little building. They have preaching on alternate Sundays and Sunday school every Sunday.

There are two incorporated and well kept cemeteries in Worth Township. One of these is the Hull Cemetery in the southwest part of the township, the other the Sebers Cemetery in the north part. The remains of many of the early settlers and some of the first county officers repose in these cemeteries.

The population of Worth Township, according to the census of 1910, was 655. This includes the Town of Luther, which was incorporated in 1903.

The first brick houses in Boone County were erected in Worth Township. These were built in 1857, both two-story residences. One was erected by Clarke Luther and the other by James E. Moss. Both are still standing and are occupied.

Worth Township has been honored above nearly all the other country townships in the number of its citizens who have been called to fill county offices. At the first election in 1849 two citizens then in tlie present limits of Worth Township were chosen to fill county offices. Thomas Sparks was elected county surveyor and John Boyles county commissioner. In 1860 Mr. Sparks was elected a member of the board of supervisors and was reelected in 1862. In 1852 James Lacy was elected sheriff of the county and served two years. In 1864 John Long was elected county supervisor and served one term. In 1851 S. C. Wood was elected county surveyor and held the office four terms, or eight years. In 1854 J. B. Montgomery was elected county judge and was reelected in 1856, 1859 and 1861. In 1865 M. K. Ramsey was elected county judge and M. T. Harlan superintendent of schools, while J. B. Hurlburt was elected county treasurer. In 1870 J. B. Vontrees was elected a member of the board of supervisors and later on Henry L. Davis was also elected a member of the board of supervisors. Some time in the '80s J. B. Patterson was elected sheriff for two terms. In 1879 J. H. Jennings was elected representative, which makes twelve citizens of Worth Township who have been honored with county offices.

The first crime of theft amounting to an indictable ofifense committed within the borders of Boone County occurred in 1854, the location of which was in Worth Township. At the date above named Richard Green owned and lived upon a farm in the southwest corner of section 35. This crime was committed on Sunday. On that day Mr. Green and his wife visited at the home of a neighbor in the vicinity, leaving three of their children at home to take care of the things about the house, two of whom were half grown. Some time in the afternoon the parents returned home and upon entering the house it occurred to Mr. Green that he had better look and see if his money was safe and untouched. The money in amount was $180, which was in a satchel which hung upon the wall of the house. He first noticed tliat the satchel was in place, but upon looking inside of it found that the money was gone. This was a very improper place to leave money for safe keeping, but in that day a crime of theft bv one of the pioneer settlers was a thing unknown and uniooked for. However, in most all things there is an exception to the general rule and this was one of them. Mr. Green called the children before him and asked them if anv of them had taken the satchel from the wall during the day. They all denied having so much as thought of such a thing. Mr. Green then asked if anybody had been about the house during his absence. They answered that a man named George Redmon had been there and had remained over an hour, but he did not touch the satchel which contained the money during his stay. This they were certain of, but he had asked them what their father had done with the money recently paid him for an interest in a certain mill he had sold. Although the children could not furnish any proof that Redmon had taken the money, yet Mr. Cireen believed he had returned to the house while the children were out playing and had stolen the money. So he called in about six of his neighbors and laid the case before them. After thinking the matter over they all came to the conclusion that Redmon had taken the money. This man Redmon was single and he was stopping for the winter with a relative who then lived in the neighborhood. One of the men called in was quite witty as well as resourceful in planning for the execution of difficult things. To this man was assigned the plan of procedure for the recovery of the money. He was well acquainted with Redmon and knew that he would take a sip of intoxicating liquor with a relish when an opportunity presented itself.

On the southeast corner of the farm lived a man in a small log cabin who kept a small stock of intoxicating liquors for sale. So this manager of alifairs ordered the other six men to mask and secrete themselves in some underbrush along a by-road leading west from the log cabin just referred to, "and when I pass along that road in company with Redmon," said he, "you must jump from your hiding places and capture him, and to keep him from knowing that I led him into the trap we are now preparing for him, you must make a little effort to catch me also." This they understood and agreed to do.

Then leaving the residence of Richard Green, the man from whom the money was stolen, the manager proceeded to the place at which Redmon was stopping while the other six men prepared and adjusted their masks and made ready to take their position at the phice he had assigned them. Redmon was found at his usual stopping place, but he seemed to be rather suspicious and at first refused to take a walk with the manager, who was always kind and friendly to him. But he was told that it was Christmas time and that it would be a nice thing as well as an apt time to take something to brace up on. To this persuasion Redmon finally yielded and in a short time the two were on their way across a field and then across a belt of timber that lay between it and the log cabin. Redmon approached it very cautiously, looking in all directions as if he expected there was trouble in store for him. They found the occupant of the log cabin, the custodian of the "stuff," at home and at his post. The manager soon made their business known and in a short time the two men were taking a few swallows of the "stuff," which soon began to raise their spirits. After a short stay it was decided to purchase a pint of the "stuff" and take it along with them to keep their spirits aroused. They went west from the log cabin along the by-road already referred to. By this time Redmon had lost all his fears and suspicions and declared that he would like to fight a whole band of Indians just to show them how quick he could send as many as a dozen of them to the happy hunting grounds. Just as he reached the full height of his boasting, the place of concealment was reached and the six masked men sprang from their hiding places and in an instant he was in their grasp. The manager ran as fast as he could, with one of the masked men in pursuit, commanding him to stop, but he soon was out of sight and the chase after him discontinued.

In a short time he returned as completely masked as any of them. Near where Redmon was caught stood a large oak tree, the monarch of all the surrounding forest. He was taken to this tree and securely tied to it. A demand was then made that he should deliver the money he had taken from Mr. Green to the masked men or he would be most cruelly treated. Redmon vigorously denied that he had stolen anv monev from Mr. Green or any one else. Two of the masked men then plied some switches to his back, during which he cried and begged most piteously. The men then ceased whipping and told Redmon if he would restore the money his torture would cease.

Again he denied any knowledge of the money, but when the men commenced whipping him again he confessed that he had taken the monev and if thev would cease whipping him he would go and find it. Thev had not gone over a hundred yards from the tree when Redmon came to a halt and denied that he had taken the money or knew where it was. He was then taken back to the tree and the switches were applied more vigorously than ever. In a short time he confessed the second time and a second time agreed to find the money. Once more thev left the tree and had gone about two hundred yards when Redmon again declared his innocence and refused to go furtiier. One of the men said they would not whip him any more as his back was then bleeding, but that they would take him to the most convenient tree and hang him. Suiting his actions to the words uttered, he placed a rope around his neck, gave it a quick jerk and ordered Redmon to follow. Believing that his last day on earth had come, Redmon made a third confession of his guilt and promised a third time to return the money. After making his third confession he never faltered, but went directly to the place he had concealed the money and bending upon his knees dug up every dollar of the money - nine twenty dollar gold pieces.

The money was now recovered, but it had taken nearly all night to do it. The wounds on Redmon's person were more serious than any of the men had intended to give him, but this was the only treatment that would induce him to give up the stolen money. Having taken the law into their own hands, they now felt a little shaky over his bleeding wounds, although they knew that none of the wounds inflicted were dangerous. So after securing the money they told Redmon that seven men were witnesses of the fact that he had stolen $i8o, for which they could send him to the penitentiary, but if he would leave the country and never return they would let him go. To this proposition he readily consented and he left that morning and was never seen bv any of them again. It was reported that Redmon was compelled to stop at the Twenty-Mile House, ten miles from the scene of his crime, and have his wounds dressed. The place where the money was buried was in a corner of a rail fence, about forty rods south of the Saunders home in Worth Township.

The next crime committed within the bounds of section 35 was the first robbery or attempted robbery ever committed in Central Iowa. This attempted robbery took place in the summer of 1856. Clarke Luther, who for many years enjoyed the distinction of being the richest man in Boone County, lived on this historical section of land. He owned a large farm and devoted his time to farming, his chosen occupation. He raised and sold both grain and stock and from time to time handled large amounts of money, which soon attracted attention.

In December, 1855, he was united in marriage to Miss Laura A. Long and commenced housekeeping on Mr. Luther's farm. At the date of their marriage Mrs. Luther was quite young, being only seventeen years old. Mr. Luther had a number of work hands employed and along with them he also worked on the farm. One day in the latter part of June, 1856, while Mr. Luther and his men were at work at some distance from the house, and while Mrs. Luther was alone, a large, strange looking man came to the door of the little log house and spoke in a very abrupt manner. She did not know he was about until she heard the sound of his voice. The house was a log cabin which had but one door, which was on the south side, and as the robber stood in it Mrs. Luther had no means of escape and so she was for the time being a prisoner in her own home. The robber had a revolver in one pocket, with a good part of it visible, while in his right hand he held a bowie knife. One can well imagine what must have been the feelings of Mrs. Luther when she was thus confronted by this horrible looking and well armed robber. "Madam," said he, "I have not come here to hurt you, but I have come for your money and I want you to give it to me at once, as I have no time to waste." At first she tried to make a noise so that Mr. Luther or some one else might hear and come to her assistance. The robber very resolutely told her that if she made a noise loud enough to bring her husband to the house he would shoot him as soon as he arrived and at the same time brandished his revolver.

Mrs. Luther then told him the money was in the smokehouse and that if he would let her out she would go and get it for him. This she said in hopes she might get out and make her escape. But as she passed out at the door the robber took her by the arm and walked along with her, thus preventing every chance of escape. After looking around in the smokehouse for a while she told the robber that the money had the previous week been deposited in a Des Moines bank by her husband, which fact she did not call to mind when she told him it was in the smokehouse.

The robber at once ordered her to return to the house and then told her not to make any noise on penalty of death. He then charged her with telling a falsehood about the money and at the same time seized her by the throat and choked her almost into a state of insensibility. The brutal robber then thrust her into a corner of the house and ordered her to remain there and not to make the slightest movement. The robber then commenced looking for the money himself. Every trunk ami box in tiic house was broken open and every crevice looked into. The clothing upon the beds was taken off and piled upon the floor, but not so much as a dollar was found to reward him for his trouble. This greatly exasperated him, for he expected to make a good haul. After telling Mrs. Luther that he did not believe they ever had any money the disappointed thief took his departure, going into the thick timber along the Des Moines River. Just a short time after the robber left, Mr. Luther came to the house for some drinking water and there found Mrs. Luther in a condition that greatly alarmed him, for she could hardly speak so as to be understood. It so happened that a man named Hoffman came to the house about that time, the neighborhood was aroused and all of the settlers went in search of the robber, but after a two days' hunt failed to capture him. If this robber had come a week sooner he would have found $2,000 in the house and without doubt would have secured the whole sum. The week prior to the robbery Mr. Luther had deposited it in a Des Moines bank for safe keeping and this defeated the plans of the robber and his confederates. At that time a man named Edward Clark lived in the vicinity and the suspicion of the citizens pointed to him as the man who had planned the robbery and brought this strange man into the country to do the job. It was also thought that after the attempt had been made Clark had assisted tiie robber in making his escape. The reasons for the suspicions against Clark were based upon the fact that a strange man which suited the description of the robber as given by Mrs. Luther was seen in company with Clark at Swede Point (Madrid) the day before the robbery and the further fact that he took no part in trying to find the robber when the search was in progress. Accordingly a warrant was issued, based upon the information charging Clark with being an accessory in this attempted robbery and he was placed under arrest and taken before Joseph Saunders, justice of the peace, who bound him over for his appearance at the next session of the grand jury. Clark gave bail, then left the country and was never seen in those parts again. The grand jury failed to find a bill of indictment against him at tlie following session because tliere was no direct testimony against him, and this exonerated his bondsmen. There were very few citizens in all the country around who did not believe that Clark was guilty of all tliat was charged against him but believing a thing and proving it are two very different things. This brought to a close the first case of attempted robbery in Boone County and so far as the writer is informed, the first in the upper Des Moines Valley.

It was a number of weeks before Mrs. Luther recovered from the shock of the attack of this brutal robber. The imprint of his fingers upon her throat did not disappear for some months afterward. The main part of the above sketch [not included in this book] was given at the request of the writer by Mrs. Luther, who now resides at the Town of Luther, about a mile east of where the attempted robbery took place fifty-one years ago.

ANOTHER ROBBERY THIRTEEN YEARS LATER

After the lapse of thirteen years the home of Mr. and Mrs. Clarke Luther became the scene of another crime of theft and robbery. By this time the family was domiciled in a two-story brick residence, and the old log house in which the first robbery took place had been converted into a tool house.

Some time in the summer of 1869 Mr. Luther missed $1,000 which was stolen from a stand table drawer that stood in one of the rooms of his residence. There were no less than a dozen men at work on the farm at the time of this theft and at least half of them boarded at the residence.

There seemed to be no doubt but that some of the men had stolen the money, but to ascertain which one was a difficult thing. After making strict inquiry among the men and after questioning them carefully about the matter, suspicion pointed to two young men named John Curry and Oliver World, who came from Illinois and who had been in Mr. Luther's employ but a short time. When informed that they were suspected of being the perpetrators of the crime they vigorously denied any knowledge of the money and at the same time declared themselves innocent of taking it; but they still continued to work on the farm. Mr. Luther kept a strict watch over them and all of their movements, not venturing to leave home for fear they would get away with the money, which he felt sure they were seeking an opportunity to do.

Hon. G. W. Crooks was then sheriff of Boone County and had been very successful in ferreting out the guilty parties to a number of crimes. For this reason he was looked upon as a fairlv good detective. Mr. Crooks was sent for and on his arrival he took the two suspected men in charge, giving them to understand at the same time tliat he was in possession of sufficient evidence to convict them of the crime. This and the prestige of his official position had a telling effect upon them. After taking them through a scathing examination thev confessed to him the crime and went to the hiding place of the money, delivering every dollar of it to the sheriff. This was the first crime or theft ever committed by these young men and, of course, they were not skilled in the management of their crime like older ones in that business would have been.

The money was hid in a windmill in the barn. Mr. Luther and his family had looked in every part of the barn for the money except in this windmill, into which they did not think it necessary to look. Sheriff Crooks took the two young thieves with him to the county seat and lodged them in the county jail. They were afterwards bound over to await the action of the grand jury by a magistrate in a bail bond of $500. They then left the state and their bail bonds were paid by relatives in Illinois.

Tn the spring of t865, Mr. Luther sold $13,000 worth of fat cattle and deposited the money in the county safe. C. W. Hamilton was then countv treasurer and was filling his fifth and last term in that office. At the close of this official term, January i, 1866, to the surprise of nearly all of the county he proved to be a defaulter of county funds to the amount of nearly $7,000. Not only this but he had paid off and reissued county bonds to the amount of $1,000 and had used up the monev which had been deposited in the county safe by various individuals. Mr. Luther lost the whole of $13,000 deposited for safe keeping, as already stated. It is true that he received a deed for a few small tracts of inferior land, but as he was on his official bond the land received was worth but little more than it took to pay his part of the bond. These historic sketches show that Mr. and Mrs. Luther have had a varied experience with bold, bad and slippery men.

On the 24th of December, 1877, a fracas occurred between two young men named Henry Loafman and Polk Bonnett. This fracas took place at the old Pleasant Grove schoolhouse, in the ill fated section 35, where the robberies and thefts above mentioned occurred. On the evening of the day above mentioned, a Christmas tree entertainment was held at this schoolhouse and when it was over and about all the people who had gathered there had departed for their homes, a quarrel arose between the above named young men, in which they came to blows. During the encounter Bonnett stabbed Loafman with a knife, inflicting wounds upon him from which he died in about two weeks. Bonnett escaped the clutches of the law and was never heard of again in these parts.

About the year 1892 John Long, who lived on the southeast corner of this same section 35, lost $1,000 from its place of concealment. He had placed the money in a tin can and had set the can in a cider mill in one of his granaries. This was a very unsafe place to keep money, though the granary was locked most of the time. A man named Ramsey who worked for Mr. Long ascertained the whereabouts of the money and one evening a little after dark he took it and went his way. After keeping it about a week he repented of his crime and turned the money over to the sheriff of the county, with the request that he restore it to Mr. Long. This the sheriff did, but Ramsey was indicted, tried and convicted and was sent to the penitentiary for a year and a half.

In the month of June, 1894, a midnight robbery was perpetrated at this same place. Three masked men broke through the door of the Long residence and rushing into the bedroom where Mr. and Mrs. Long slept, forced gags into their mouths and ordered them not to move on penalty of death. They searched the house for money but only found $350. The robbers appeared to be much disappointed because they did not get more money. When they departed they took Mr. Long's revolver as far as the woodpile and left it there. The next day a search was made for the robbers but none of them were ever found. Who they were and whence they came no one could find out. It is very remarkable that two robberies, three thefts and one murder were all committed on one section of land. The first thought will perhaps be that the citizens were a bad lot, but the fact that not one of the perpetrators of these crimes except Polk Bonnett ever lived in Worth Township dispenses with that idea. The reason the robberies and thefts were committed in this particular location was the well known fact that the families named were known to have large sums of money.

According to the census of 1910 the population of Worth Township was 655, including the Town of Luther. Luther has about one hundred and fifty people. The following list of soldiers of the Civil war went from Worth Township:

G. W. Barrett
Jordan Redmon
David Gilmore
M. T. Harlan
James R. Payne
W. K. Paxton
M. K. Ramsey
George Ramsey
S. P. Zenor
D. E. Myers
D. S. Bushnell
William Dyer
Wilford Torr
Caleb Green
Harrison Boone
Charles Bustrom
M. S. Cunningham
Oliver Gildea
Jefferson D. Gildea
George Hull
Martin Hull
Jackson Hull
John Huffman
Madison Long
Jacob Long
Thomas Myers
Joshua Rozell
Joshua Harlan
William Vontrces
M. Pettibone
Edward Boone
Cyrus Davis
W. G. Grayson
J. B. Hulburt
J. B. Patterson
S. A. Paxton
James P. Williams
William R. Dyer
Thomas J. Gildea
John Nutt
R. N. Cartwright
Sylvanus Bennett
H. W. Hull
Tyler Boone
Jesse Boone
James A. Davis
S. S. Zenor
N. H. Schooler.

Of this list of fifty-one soldiers who went from Worth Township, only six are still living in the township. These are Jackson Hull, Jefferson D. Gildea, Tyler Boone, Jesse Boone, Cyrus Davis and W. G. Grayson.

The present officers of Worth Township are: Trustees, William Gildea, T. Burlingame, M. Bixby; township clerk, Edward Northup; assessor, B. F. Hull.

Source: History of Boone County, Iowa
N. E. Goldthwait, Supervising Editor
Illustrated, Volume I
Chicago, Pioneer Publishing Company
1914

Transcribed by Lynn Diemer-Mathews and uploaded June 18, 2024.

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1914 History of Boone County Chapter XX Worth Township

1914 History of Boone County
Chapter XX
Worth Township